8 The 1996 Connecticut Supreme Court case, Sheff v. O'Neill, resulted in the creation of a series of magnet schools as part of a strategy for reducing minority isolation and segregation in public schools in the Hartford area. This landmark decision, which determined that racially and socioeconomically isolated students in Hartford public schools were receiving inferior and inadequate educational opportunities mandated desegregation efforts for the urban school system and led to the establishment of eight interdistrict magnet schools.

12 In 2002-03, 71 percent of public high schools offered at least one dual-credit course. See Michael Planty, Stephen Provasnik, and Bruce Daniel, High School Coursetaking: Findings from the Condition of Education, NCES2007-065 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, 2007), p. 5, http://www.nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2007065 (accessed July 8, 2008).

14 Between 1982 and 2004, the average number of course credits accrued by high school graduates increased from 21.7 to 25.8 credits. See Michael Planty, Stephen Provasnik, and William Hussar, The Condition of Education 2007, NCES2007-064 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, 2007), p. 15, http://www.nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2007064 (accessed July 8, 2008).

15 ACT and the Education Trust, On Course for Success: A Close Look at Selected Courses That Prepare All Students for College (Iowa City, Iowa: ACT, 2004). This study researched 10 high-achieving, high-poverty, high-minority high schools to answer the question: "What are the components of high school courses that prepare students for successful entry into postsecondary education without the need for remediation?" The study isolates four major characteristics shared by these high-performing high schools that contribute to students' future success both in work and in college: high-level, college-oriented material in core courses; qualified, experienced teachers; teaching that is flexible and responsive to students; and tutorial support.